OYO has announced its foray into Nepal, with the launch of its debut hotel in Kathmandu. Nepal is the second overseas market for OYO, after its successful venture into Malaysia in January 2016 where it has now grown to 200 hotels. Launched in 2013, OYO’s network has grown to 7000 hotels in 200 cities. Commenting on the launch, Ritesh Agarwal, founder and CEO – OYO, said, “OYO has been at the forefront of the small and budget hotels revolution in India. Building the category grounds-up, we have employed technology and operational acumen to deliver delight to our customers and unparalleled benefits to partners. Our network has witnessed robust growth to become the largest in India. After our successful overseas foray in Malaysia, we are now thrilled to offer OYO’s hassle-free and standardised stay experience to travellers visiting Nepal.”
With a wide range of offerings – from beautiful locales, adventure activities, temples and monasteries, to shopping-hubs and casinos – Nepal has emerged as a preferred destination for an impulsively planned getaway any time of the year. According to the Department of Immigration, of the 174,803 tourists who visited Nepal in 2016, the highest number of travellers were reported from India. A further boost to cross-border trade and tourism is expected with India and Bangladesh set to reopen the defunct trans-border rail routes which would extend links to Nepal and Bhutan.
The travel and hospitality sector in India is witnessing a phenomenon of ‘impulse planning’. Even as travel-planning cycle reduces further, the expectations from on-ground suppliers and agents of delivering a non-negotiable and predetermined experience have become stronger. Affordable and trusted stay-options remain one of the top concerns for most travellers. With OYO in Nepal, Indian travellers will find it easier to extend their impulse-planning behaviour while planning a holiday. Nepal is also one of the few countries that offers visa-on-arrival to Indians. Commenting on this, Agarwal said, “Today, 70 percent of Indians admit to unplanned spending – from relationships to shopping, instant gratification is the new norm. At the same time, they are increasingly looking at discerning or standardised experiences; even if the purchase decision was driven by impulse. With our promise of standardised and predictable stays, OYO caters to the impulse-planning behavior displayed by millennial traveller. We are also engaging with various stakeholders to create partnerships that help us make new experiences accessible to tourists.”
OYO is an urban innovator that is tackling the lack of equilibrium between demand and supply of quality living space. Using technology and talent to fix this socio-economic problem, it has transformed over 70,000 hotel rooms in India and Malaysia. Further, it invests in skilling and training the staff of its partner-hotels to deliver better service. This performance-driven approach has, in turn, enabled better revenues and profits for partners, and better service and experience for guests. The company also recently launched OYO Captains, to provide personalised on-ground local assistance to guests. Agarwal added, “There are many examples of people who have become successful after partnering with OYO. From rooms taken on lease to having their own property, we have helped them grow at a fast pace and become successful entrepreneurs. We are excited with the opportunity to co-create another successful travel-and-hospitality ecosystem in Nepal.”